NEW iPad cart w/ procedures

The Tech Team has put together a new iPad cart.

1. Continue to send schedule requests to CyberHead by email.
2. In your request, please indicate how many iPads you will use for the periods you need.
3. Replace the iPads in the cardboard box horizontally.
4. If an individual iPad's power drops below 10%, please notify the Tech Team when you return the cart.
5. There are no longer any power cords on the cart. All recharging will take place in the Main Lab.

There are 21 iPads stored on the iPad cart. They have colored silicone covers, with 3 each of 7 colors: light pink, dark pink, white, orange, yellow, blue, and purple.

You can stop reading now if you don't care about the explanation, but I find it interesting, so if you want to learn something, keep reading.  I learned that the lithium-ion batteries in the iPads (and most mobile devices these days) function best when they are charged about half way. The battery actually functions better at 40% than it does at 90%. Who knew?  Also, these devices have a limit to the total number of times they can be recharged before the battery goes bad. That limit is somewhere in the thousands, so we don't have anything to worry for a while. But, when the iPads are plugged in all the time, the power drops to 97% and then gets recharged back to 100%. It might do that a few times over a weekend, or several times during the day between classes. So, we have been using up 10-20 recharge cycles every week instead of 2-5, which is all we need, depending on use.

With the way we've been using the iPads, they are capable of holding a charge all day. We will always make sure that the iPads have sufficient power for your students when you need them, but do not expect them to be at 100% power, or even above 90%. Doing so results in inefficient battery use and a shortened battery life over time. These iPads are only 18 months old and nobody know what the lifespan is yet. If we can get them to last an extra 6 months ( a year or two from now) with battery battery management, we will end up saving a lot of money on replacements.

We also put the iPads on a smaller cart to make it more manageable. Because it it narrower, it moves through all the doorways in the school. Because it it less heavy, this cart is easier to push through the halls and moves more smoothly across the sidewalk between buildings.

If you have any thoughts about the new cart, please send your comments to cyberhead@harfordday.org.

Thanks for reading this far. I like knowing all this tech stuff, but I know you've got better things to do, so I keep it for the end. If you have any questions about power management for your own mobile devices, feel free to ask.

Daniel

Dragon Tech Week in Review: October 1

In this issue of Dragon Tech Week in Review:

Chrome EZ Viewer, iPad Crate, Miro Video Converter, Flip Camera, iPhone 5, Facebook Timeline, New Apps, faculty iPad, Picasa Web Albums, and Calendar Appointment Slots.

Chrome EZ Preview

I installed the Chrome EZ viewer extension. When I turn it on, it shows a preview of a webpage before I go to the trouble of actually clicking on the page and then clicking back if I'm not interested. So far I like it because it offers a nice feature when I want to use it, but it stays out of the way when I don't. 

iPad crate

I built the iPad Crate this week. The school got some additional iPads over the summer. They are now kept in a milk crate in the unassigned classroom next to the MS Commons. There is a power strip and power cables attached to the crate. We don't yet have detailed policies for how the crate will be managed, so go ahead and use it, but please return it when you are finished. The crate should generally stay in the room, but a teacher can carry it to another room when needed. Just return it at the end of the period. I put together the iPad Crate to add flexibility to our campus mobile computing options.

MP3 or MP4?

I had a project this week converting mp4 music files into mp3 music files. This article from HowToDoThings.com offers a brief explanation of the difference. I used Miro Video Converter to do the job. It has a drag-and-drop feature to convert many audio/video file formats into something else. It's designed for moving files between your camera, computer, phone, iPad, or music player when you don't have the correct format. It's a free app downloadable from the App Store for Mac. If your Mac does not yet have the App Store, then you need Mac OSX 10.6. If you just got a MacBook this year, you already have 10.6 and the App Store. If you have a MacBook from earlier years, bring it to the Media Lab and I will upgrade it for you. Unfortunately, desktop eMacs and iBooks are too old to run 10.6.  But, if you don't care about the App Store, then you don't need it anyway.

Flip Camera

Extended Day used the Flip Camera this week to record some of their activities. Karen explained that she wants to start keeping a video record of events and use the clips later in the year for a video project. Although earlier this year, Cisco announced Plans to shut down their Flip Video division, he still have some of the cameras here at school and they are waiting for you to use them.

Apple iPhone 5 on Tues Oct 4

Apple has a big announcement next Tuesday, October 4 about the upcoming iPhone 5...if you are interested in that sort of thing. You can read about it PCWorld. So, what does it have to do with you? Probably nothing. We will upgrade all the school's iPads and iPods to the new iOS 5 when it is available. There will be some new features that we will have to get used to, just as we incorporated the new folders feature last year. The lesson is that there is always something new coming out.

Who is afraid of Facebook?

Here is a great article about how NOT to be afraid of Facebook. Facebook is neither good nor bad, just like a TV unit is neither good nor bad. Just because teenagers have 1000 friends doesn't mean that you have to. You are in control so you can limit access only to pictures of your new grandkids if that's what you want. Or if you want to engage in debate with friends of friends of friends over whether or not Maryland is in the North or the South, you can use Facebook for that, too. It's up to you.

Mad Men and Facebook Timeline

Do you like Mad Men? Do you like Facebook? You'll love this YouTube mashup.

New Apps this week

WI Orchestra
Place Value

iPad for teachers

We have a new iPad with a pretty blue cloth cover. It is set up for teachers to borrow (and return) so they can practice at home. It has flowers on the covers, but it is not too girly looking, so even the men should feel comfortable carrying it around for a weekend. Contact   if you would like a turn.

Picasa Web Albums for class photos

It is now only one click from the Third Grade home page to their PicasaWeb photo albums. Because Picasa is owned by Google, you are already logged in when you login to your mail or your website.

new K-Prep calendar

K-Prep has a streamlined home page with a single-click to their calendar of events. Here are some help documents for basic information about using Google Apps Calendar. I think they would be helpful if only to see what is possible. Then you can contact the Tech Team and get more help for doing it yourself.

Calendar intro video: http://learn.googleapps.com/cal_overview_vid

Intro document: https://docs.google.com/a/harfordday.org/document/d/1TGdK72bz1Zn1RNhJQedRE02HLGXf1T4cRRfQSdM5hOQ/edit?hl=en&authkey=CNCw16EI

Appointment slots

I created a calendar with appointment slots for the Media Lab. If you want to work in the Media Lab or work with me one-on-one for any tech project, just click on any open slot and make your appointment. That time is then reserved for you. Appointment slots are available from 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM.

Click here for Media Lab appointments.

In the past two weeks Esther, Linda, Marge, Betty, and Kate have all used the appointment calendar, so you can ask them if you have any questions.

Amazon Kindle Fire

I liked this article about the Amazon Kindle Fire, which was announce this week.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/28/amazon-fire-tablet-unveiled-7-inch-display-199-price-tag/

Daniel

--

Daniel Rozmiarek
Technology Staff
Harford Day School
www.harfordday.org

hdscybergofer.blogspot.com

Syllabus Oct 4-11

Do everything all over again

Syllabus Science 7 Sep 27-Oct 3

This is step one
This is step 2
read your book
do your homework

Why does my video look bad?

We have had several issues in this first week of school with pictures, documents, or videos that look fine on your computer, but then they look bad when they are projected onto a screen.  Do you remember trying to see the pictures on the Harford Day home page during our opening meetings in the library?

Have you asked CyberHead to set up a projector for you in the MS Commons or the MPR only to find out that it looks blurry or is too dark? Well, maybe you didn't do anything wrong, but it's still not something we can fix.

The basic answer is that things look different on computer screens than they look when projected onto a screen. When you see something on your computer, you are looking at direct, illuminated light. But, when you use a projector and a screen, you are looking at reflected light off the screen.  If you are creating content to show to an audience, either your class or a faculty meeting, there are some basic lessons to remember.

• Most pictures projected onto a screen will look darker than they did on your computer screen. If brightness is critical, test it on a projector before your actual presentation.
• When you are creating slides or documents, always start with black text on a white background. Remember that you are displaying content and you want people to read without eye strain. You are not trying to impress people with fancy fonts and colored backgrounds.
• You computer screen probably has a more detailed resolution than what you see displayed from a projector. Text that looks fine on your computer will look fuzzy during a presentation. If you are printing onto paper, use a serif font such as Times New Roman for the best look. But, that same font looks fuzzy during a presentation. When displaying text on a computer screen or from a projector, you should use a sans serif font such as Arial.
• People will develop eye strain much faster when looking at a screen compared to reading from a printed sheet of paper. Use a larger font that you think is necessary and write in short, but complete, sentences. If you have entire paragraphs for your audience read, either distribute printed copies, send it by email before the class, or display it on the screen and step aside quietly and allow your audience to read to themselves.

The basic takeaway message is that things look different on your computer screen than they do when displayed from a projector during a presentation. The HDS Tech Team can guide you toward reducing problems, but we can't fix bad design. Test your presentation or your video on a projector in time to make changes if things don't look right.

~The HDS Tech Team

This message is archived with other tech tips at the CyberGofer blog.

Why should I teach my kids about a database?

Many of you received new computers or iPads over the past year. As the HDS Tech Team, our job is to keep track of all this new equipment. We are using the online database Grubba to keep track of it all. Because it is an online database, We do not have to be at any particular computer to see the information we need. We can even walk around the campus with an iPad and check the status of your MacBook or iPad.



You can do the same thing with your students.  Creating an account at Grubba is free and took just a minute or two.  Your students can create their own forms using the fields that they identify themselves. Using databases to teach curriculum can align with ISTE's National Educational Technology Standards for Students. Understanding and being able to use databases directly maps to Standard 3: Research and Information Fluency, and Standard 6: Technology Operations and Concepts.

Getting kids to use a database is important in itself just to learn what a database is. Entering data is also a good way to get kids to interact with a computer, a laptop, or an iPad to learn how to use the device. But, a database is also an important concept for understanding the world around them. Beginning with our youngest kids here at Harford Day School, we teach them about categorizing groups and sets.

If you want to learn more about using a database, we would be happy to set up a workshop on the topic. Or if you have any trouble creating an account, just let us know at Cyberhead.

Thanks,

HDS Tech Team

using Harford Day GMail offline

If you are happy with everything about your GMail, you do not need this message.

Also, GMail Offline works best with the Chrome web browser. I've included a link below if you prefer using IE or Firefox. If you are stuck on Safari, you should probably skip this feature.

There is a new service from Google that allows you to use your Harford Day GMail (or any GMail account) even when there is no internet connection.

If you are using the Chrome web browser, you can Get Started Now.

You might want to use this service if you do not have broadband internet service at your home. GMail Offline will copy all of your email messages before you leave school and allow you to read and respond normally. When you return to school, as soon as your computer detects an internet connection, GMail Offline will synchronize your account by sending any messages you composed and downloading any new messages.

Another reason you might prefer GMail Offline is to avoid messages telling that there is no connection available. Sometimes you might see this message if there is a delay somewhere in our campus network, a delay with the Verizon connection, or simply a general internet delay somewhere in the world. 

Some people prefer the simple interface of GMaill Offline compared to the full-service GMail. If you are comfortable checking email messages a few times a day and you don't like the constant notification of incoming messages, you might prefer GMail Offline for all your email use.

If you want to read more about GMail Offline, here is a good article from PC Magazine.

Gmail Offline for Internet Explorer and Firefox

If you are interested in a workshop session to learn more about using GMail Offline, please send a message to Cyberhead and we will schedule it for you.

This message will be archived in my HDS CyberGofer blog. 

Daniel